1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to jewelry. It relates more particularly to such jewelry consisting of an array of beads or other ornaments strung on a support such as a chain or wire.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Necklaces often consist of a multiplicity of beads strung on an elongated slender support, e.g. chain, wire, string, etc., which can be hung around a person""s neck so that the necklace falls on the person""s chest area. In some cases, the number of beads on the support is such that the beads occupy substantially the entire length of the support. In other cases, the beads are arranged in groups spaced apart along the length of the support with the beads in each group often having different sizes. In the latter event, steps must be taken to provide stops for at least the end beads of each group in order to maintain the integrity of each group and the spacing between adjacent groups along the support. Often the stops consist of drops of solder on the support that bracket each group. In the case of chains, the bracketing links may be flattened or deformed in some way so that they cannot pass through the holes in the adjacent beads. When the bead support is a string, the string can be knotted at the opposite ends of each bead group.
Conventional necklaces and other jewelry of this type are disadvantaged in that once the beads or other ornaments are strung, there is no possibility to rearrange them along the support. As one may imagine, this limits the utility of the necklace or other jewelry article. For example, while a given woman""s necklace may coordinate well with one dress or blouse, it may not look pleasing with another dress or blouse having a different style or neckline. Consequently, a woman may have to purchase many different necklaces in order to satisfy her wardrobe requirements. Needless to say, this can result in a considerable expense, particularly if the necklaces are of a precious metal such as silver or gold.
Accordingly it is an object of the present invention to provide a beaded belt, necklace, bracelet, anklet and or other jewelry article whose beads can be arranged in different groupings along a chain or other elongated support.
Another object of the invention is to provide a jewelry article comprising a plurality of beads and/or other ornaments strung on a support wherein the beads and/or other ornaments can be adjustably grouped along the support.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a necklace or other jewelry article comprising an elongated slender support having one or more beads adjustably positioned along the support.
A further object of the invention is to provide an adjustable self-stopping bead for a necklace or other jewelry article.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a method of making an adjustable self-stopping bead for a necklace and or other jewelry article.
Other objects will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter.
The invention accordingly comprises the several steps and the relation of one or more of such steps with respect to each of the others, and the article possessing the features, properties and relation of elements, which are exemplified in the following detailed description, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.
Briefly, jewelry incorporating my invention includes an elongated slender support having strung thereon a multiplicity of beads and/or other ornaments one or more of which is a self-stopping bead whose position along the support can be adjustably fixed. This allows the beads or other ornaments on the support to be variably grouped along the length of the support to suit the desires of the wearer. The support may be any one of a variety of known members such as a chain, solid or braided wire, tubular wire, string, monofilament wire or the like.
Each of the adjustable self-stopping beads comprises a hollow shell having a pair of holes therein through which the bead support may be threaded. The bead also has incorporated therein at the time of its manufacture a short flexible resilient tube which is aligned with the holes in the shell and preferably compressed between the opposite ends of the shell so that the tube remains aligned with the holes. When that bead is strung on the support, the segment of the support within the tube is resiliently engaged by the wall of the tube such that an appreciable force is required in order to slide that bead along the support. Consequently, the self-stopping beads allow the variable grouping of other, freely slidable, beads or ornaments along the support. For example, when a beaded necklace incorporating my invention is hung around the wearer""s neck to form a loop, a self-stopping bead and all of the other beads above it on the loop can be grouped at a selected elevation on the necklace. In the case of a bracelet or belt, the beads or other ornaments may be variably grouped around the wearer""s wrist or waist. As will be seen, a wide variety of different ornamental groupings are possible for a given piece of jewelry.